ECON 2103 - Principles of MicroeconomicsBusiness 212; TR 2:00-3:15
This course emphasis is on theories of the firm, value and price determination, and functional distribution, with the application of these theories to the problem of particular firms, industries and markets. Link to MS Teams ![]()
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Section I - Thinking Like an Economist and The Basics
Introduction, Economics defined
Positive vs. Normative
Production Possibilities, Economic Systems
Determinants of Supply and Demand
- Movement vs. Shift (Seinfeld)
Market Equilibrium and Comparative Statics
Consumer and Producer Surplus, Deadweight loss, Price Floors and Ceilings
- Listening: Planet Money: Big Government Cheese
Class activities: Minimum Wage
Section II - Applications of Supply and Demand, Elasticity, and Utility
Elasticities: Price elasticity, Income elasticity, Cross-price elasticity, Elasticity of supply
- Practice Problems
- TEDed Lesson: Price-Elasticity
- NY Times, Price increase for prescriptions
- Labor supply elasticity example: Google driverless car program
- Listening: Freakonomics: Why Uber is an Economist's Dream
Total Utility, Diamond Water Paradox, Marginal Utility
Budget Constraints, Utility Maximization, Applications to Signalling
- Listening: Choose one of the two podcasts to listen to
- Should We Really Behave Like Economists Say We Do?
- Are the Rich Really Less Generous Than the Poor?
Section III - Production, and Perfect Competition
The Production Function, Economic Profit, Production Inputs
- value of the marginal product: Lebron and Steph Curry version (ESPN)
SR vs. LR, Cost Functions
The Firm: Economic costs, Profits, and Production
Perfect Competition, The Profit Maximizing Rule
Price Gouging
Economies and Diseconomies of Scale
Long-run Competitive Equilibrium
Section IV - Review, Applied Economics
Industrial Organization - Monopoly, Monopolistic Competition, and the Efficiency of PC
Potential Applied Topics
Labor Market Discrimination - Schelling's Tipping Model, Gender Gap
International Trade - Gains From Trade, Specialization, Import Fees and Quotas
Game Theory - Nash Equilibirum
Sports Economics - Introduction to economic research
Environmental Economics - The Coase Theorem, Externalities, and the Tragedy of the Commons
Introduction, Economics defined
Positive vs. Normative
Production Possibilities, Economic Systems
Determinants of Supply and Demand
- Movement vs. Shift (Seinfeld)
Market Equilibrium and Comparative Statics
Consumer and Producer Surplus, Deadweight loss, Price Floors and Ceilings
- Listening: Planet Money: Big Government Cheese
Class activities: Minimum Wage
Section II - Applications of Supply and Demand, Elasticity, and Utility
Elasticities: Price elasticity, Income elasticity, Cross-price elasticity, Elasticity of supply
- Practice Problems
- TEDed Lesson: Price-Elasticity
- NY Times, Price increase for prescriptions
- Labor supply elasticity example: Google driverless car program
- Listening: Freakonomics: Why Uber is an Economist's Dream
Total Utility, Diamond Water Paradox, Marginal Utility
Budget Constraints, Utility Maximization, Applications to Signalling
- Listening: Choose one of the two podcasts to listen to
- Should We Really Behave Like Economists Say We Do?
- Are the Rich Really Less Generous Than the Poor?
Section III - Production, and Perfect Competition
The Production Function, Economic Profit, Production Inputs
- value of the marginal product: Lebron and Steph Curry version (ESPN)
SR vs. LR, Cost Functions
The Firm: Economic costs, Profits, and Production
Perfect Competition, The Profit Maximizing Rule
Price Gouging
Economies and Diseconomies of Scale
Long-run Competitive Equilibrium
Section IV - Review, Applied Economics
Industrial Organization - Monopoly, Monopolistic Competition, and the Efficiency of PC
Potential Applied Topics
Labor Market Discrimination - Schelling's Tipping Model, Gender Gap
International Trade - Gains From Trade, Specialization, Import Fees and Quotas
Game Theory - Nash Equilibirum
Sports Economics - Introduction to economic research
Environmental Economics - The Coase Theorem, Externalities, and the Tragedy of the Commons